


The Beginning of the End

by VigilantePond



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: A touch of AmyEleven, F/F, F/M, M/M, OT3, Time Jump, Young Amelia Pond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-03 16:33:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11536119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VigilantePond/pseuds/VigilantePond
Summary: Leadworth 1997 and New York 1935. Amy Pond gets two visits from the Thirteenth Doctor in two very different periods of her life.





	1. Tell her, this is the story of Amelia Pond

“ _ Tell her that if she’s patient, the days are coming that she’ll never forget. Tell her she’ll go to see and fight pirates. She’ll fall in love with a man who’ll wait two thousand years to keep her safe. Tell her she’ll give hope to the greatest painter who ever lived. And save a whale in outer space. Tell her, this is the story of Amelia Pond. And this is how it ends. _

Leadworth - 1997

 

“Amelia Pond, get down here at once!” Aunt Sharon barked.

The recalcitrant 8 year old girl was having none of it this morning. Apparently, Aunt Sharon had brought a visitor with her, someone that she had met from her posh little book club. Amelia decided that anyone acquainted with Aunt Sharon must be the human equivalent of watching paint dry, so she refused to leave her cozy bedroom. Nonetheless, she heard footsteps approaching followed by two female voices - Aunt Sharon’s was annoying and shrill, but the other one sounded like a sweet melody, and Amelia noticed the Northern accent.

“Amelia, this is John Smith. She’s a new member of my book club and she really wanted to meet you,” Aunt Sharon gestured towards the smiling blonde woman on her left. Her golden hair was cut into a stylish bob which looked out of place and too modern for this time and place, but her heavy black coat seemed almost ancient. A pair of kind green eyes fixated on young Amelia; it was the kind of green that calmed everyone who looked into them, and resembled lily pads on a pond.

“John Smith? That’s a boy’s name,” Amelia retorted, resulting in a sharp “ _Amelia!”_ and a glare from her aunt.

The woman took no offence to this, and instead chuckled lightheartedly. “It’s a long story, but the name stuck, I like it. Anyway, you must be Amelia Pond! Nice to meet you!” John beamed, and slowly paced around her room.

At the whistle of the kettle, Aunt Sharon leapt downstairs and left the child with the strange woman. Amelia was puzzled as she watched John stop at her countertop, where she kept her dolls of the Raggedy Doctor. The woman gingerly picked it up and stared at it in silence for what seemed like ages, and blinked back a tear.

Amelia snatched the doll back protectively, and hugged it tightly to her chest. “It’s mine,” she snapped.

John smiled patiently and sat with Amelia on the edge of her bed. “Can I tell you a story, Amelia?”

The small child nodded, still refusing to let go of her Raggedy doll.

“Once upon a time, there was a girl named Amelia Pond…”

“But I’m Amelia Pond! I’m the only Amelia Pond in the whole wide world!” she frowned.

“Well, perhaps it’s a different Amelia Pond, or maybe it could be you. It’s just a story,” John explained. Amelia shrugged.

“Amelia Pond was a patient little girl. She had to wait for many things, and she didn’t enjoy it. Not at first. Later on, she realized that being patient gave her the best days of her life- days that she would never forget.”

“Like what?,” Amelia started to swing her legs peevishly, shaking the bed.

John gave her a stern look, but carried on. “One day, she ventured out to the sea, and fought some pirates. Then, she fell in love with a man who waited two thousand years to keep her safe, gave hope to the greatest painter who ever lived, and even saved a whale in outer space.”

“But how does it end?”

Just then, Aunt Sharon appeared in the doorway. “Tea’s ready!” John decided that she would finish the story after tea; the three sauntered downstairs, with Amelia still clutching her doll.


	2. Summer falls when the question is asked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Thirteenth Doctor surprises Amy at her book signing in 1935.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that in canon, Summer Falls was actually published in 1954, but for the fic’s sake I’ll change it.

1935 New York City 

 

“ _ Heart beating, she made to go after it, but then the bell on Armand’s bicycle called to her. She ran down the garden path into the lane. ‘Come on,’ she said. ‘We’ve only got an afternoon left. Let’s make the most of it.’ And they did.”  _

A thunderous roar of applause followed the soothing Scottish accent, and the crowd rose to give their favourite author a standing ovation. Amy Pond, under her pen name “Amelia Williams”, was doing a reading and book signing this afternoon for her debut novel  _ Summer Falls _ . She removed her round reading glasses and grinned from ear to ear at her audience. Her gaze flitted around the room; her eyes rested on the blonde woman sitting at the very back. There was a certain glint in her eyes that suggested something unusual. Amy thought that the woman was very familiar, but she could not pin-point exactly where she had seen her before. Maybe it was in a dream, but Amy had read somewhere that humans were not capable of creating new faces in dreams. Therefore, those faces must have been encountered before in real life. Frequently, she dreamed of The Doctor.

Amy missed The Doctor every day, and the past few years were extremely difficult to get through. Writing was both her day job and her escape; it was also where she could place all her eccentric ideas about things that she had seen on her trips, and places that she wished she could go to. Rory was a nurse in 1935 as well, and he spent countless long nights at the hospital. In addition to the Great Depression, there was a sharp increase in meningitis in 1935; there were at least 5000 cases this year in America, as opposed to 2500 in the previous year.  It was great that Rory was helping people, but Amy couldn’t help but feel lonely some nights; in that case, her best friends were her typewriter and her “massager”. 

She swiftly signed books for the people in the queue, and greeted them affectionately. The thing about being a public figure in 1935 was that nobody could ask for a selfie. Finally, there was only one book remaining in the pile. 

“Who is this for?” Amy asked without looking up.  

“John Smith,” a woman’s voice replied. 

“Oh, that’s funny. I knew a woman whose name was John Smith once,” she piped up while handing the book back. Before she could get a good look at her fan, the woman had taken the book and left.

 

 

After the signing, Amy headed over to her favourite coffee shop, the  _ Vincent Van Gogh Cafe _ . It was her favourite for obvious reasons. 

“Can I get uhhh…  _ Starry Night _ ?” a familiar voice said. 

_ Starry Night  _ was a sweet vanilla caramel coffee, and it also happened to be Amy’s favourite drink. To her delight and surprise, she saw the blonde woman from her book signing waiting at the counter. She was dressed a long black peacoat and grey pin-striped trousers, which looked extremely odd in the sea of long dresses, plumed hats, and gauntlet gloves which the other women wore. 

“Excuse me, I think you were at my book signing? You’re John Smith, right?” Amy Pond cautioned, and tapped the woman on the shoulder. 

She turned, aghast. “Amy Pond! Yes, hello. I’m a big fan. Love your book.” 

“Thank you, I’m honoured. Sorry, this might be odd but I have the strangest feeling that I’ve seen you before. Have we met?” Amy inquired. 

The woman hesitated and chewed on her lip, as if she was having a civil war inside about some big dilemma. “No, just the book signing. I'm a fan of yours.” 

Suddenly, Amy realized that nobody from the literature world knew her real name. She was known as Amelia Williams everywhere, and few people knew the name  _ Amy Pond _ . 

“How did you know my name?” 

“Like I said- big fan. As in, stalker fan,” John Smith spluttered. 

“Book signing…” Amy mumbled to herself as she continued to study the stranger.  _ Book signing… books… John Smith…  _ “Oh my god!” she gasped. “Aunt Sharon’s book club. You were the woman from her book club and you came to visit me when I was just a little girl! But how…” Amy realized that John still looked as young as she did all those years ago. 

John sighed, although she had presumably resolved her big conflict. She gestured for Amy to lean in closer. 

Softly, she whispered into her ear, “Come along, Pond.” 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ _ Doctor _ ?!” Amy marveled. 

She stared, wide eyed and mouth agape. Amy Pond knew that timelords could regenerate, and she always assumed that regenerating into a woman was an indisputable possibility. However, it was the sheer fact that she could see The Doctor again that surprised her the most. 

Immediately, Amy disregarded all the other people in the cafe and squealed loudly as she threw her arms around the Doctor. The Doctor wrapped her into a tight hug and Amy began to weep into her shoulder. What a bizarre sight that must have been for the people in the cafe. 

“My Amelia Pond,” she whispered. “First face this face- actually no, not  _ this  _ face, but you get the point; Seared onto my hearts.” 

“How is this possible, though? I thought- you said that you couldn’t take the TARDIS into this time period, and the fabric of time and space would be torn apart if you did. I can’t believe this- in a good way oh my god I-” 

The reunion was briefly interrupted by the arrival of their  _ Starry Night _ s. So, the Doctor explained everything while they drank their coffees. 

“You see, I took the TARDIS to 1935 Massachusetts and then I hitched a ride from there to New York in a good old automobile. I can’t believe it took me two regenerations to think of that,” the Doctor remarked. 

“It’s the new female regeneration, I’m telling you,” Amy laughed. “This is amazing. I had this really weird dream where you regenerated into a man though. I was walking down these stairs in the  TARDIS, and then I said ‘ _ Raggedy man, goodnight _ ’ and you turned into this grey-haired lad.”

The Doctor smirked, “That wasn’t  _ exactly  _ just a dream.” 

“So, how have you been doing? You haven’t been alone, have you? How is Melody doing?” Amy asked. A thousand questions were bouncing in her head like popping popcorn. “You, me, and Rory. Dinner at my place tonight.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. The beginning is an excerpt from the Summer Falls book by James Goss that is featured in the show.  
> 2\. I don't know how historically accurate vanilla coffee is in the '30s, but the Vincent Van Gogh Cafe LLC is an actual cafe in New York. 3. It actually serves a drink called "Starry Night" and I thought it was nice to include that even though it probably was not open in the '30s.  
> 4\. Shoutout to the "Can I get uhhh" meme.


	3. Thus, let us drink beer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amy, Rory, and the Doctor. And beer. Lots of beer.

1935 New York City 

The Ponds lived in a cramped apartment in Brooklyn cluttered with brown leather furniture and a pale oak bookshelf. In the corner was Amy’s writing nook, where her Remington typewriter sat proudly atop heaps of paper and other scrapped ideas. Though it resembled a pigsty, the suite radiated a warm and cozy ambiance. They were extremely fortunate that the Great Depression didn’t affect them as much as it affected others, but they were far from luxurious. In the dining room, a pot of fake sunflowers was the centrepiece of the round table where they gathered for dinner. 

When Amy brought the Doctor inside, Rory was already cooking. It was so strong that they could smell the pungent aroma from across the Brooklyn Bridge. 

“Rory, you’ll never guess who I just invited to join us for dinner,” Amy gushed. 

“Franklin Roosevelt?” Rory called from the kitchen. 

When Amy broke the news, Rory accidentally smashed one of their favourite plates. Needless to say, he was more than thrilled to see the Doctor again, and the feeling was mutual. He opted that it was only mandatory to celebrate with the cans of beer that they were saving. Prohibition ended just 2 years ago, and canned beer was newly introduced to the United States this year. So, after wolfing down Rory’s palatable chicken and having lengthy discussions about the Doctor’s journeys without Amy and Rory, and their boring lives in New York, they drank themselves silly. 

“Doctor, you’re  _ really pretty _ ,” Rory slurred, and started laughing for no reason. 

Amy shot Rory a stern look. “For the record, I’m only a  _ little  _ jealous,” she chimed in, “ I have to agree. You  _ are  _ so beautiful. Being a woman suits you, Doctor; you should do this more often.”

The Doctor raised her eyebrows and gave both Ponds a coquettish smile. “I’d just like to point out that I’ve kissed both of you before, and I wouldn’t mind doing it again.”

She cracked open another can and downed it in big gulps. The bitter beer tasted of Ood urine and sweat, but it made her feel untroubled and purely jovial. Right now, there was nothing better than just sitting down and drinking with the Ponds.

“Let’s do it!” Amy hollered. 

It was slightly jarring that Rory so readily agreed as well. First, Amy inched closer to the Doctor, and ran her swift slender fingers through her sandy blonde hair while she stroked the side of Amy’s face gently. Then, she closed her eyes and the Doctor pressed her lips against Amy’s. The first thing that Amy noticed was how soft her lips were. She’d completely ignored the heavy stench of beer on both of their breaths, and instead focused on the euphoric feeling in her stomach. It was different from kissing Rory, but she couldn’t describe it with exact words. It was like comparing lobster to birthday cake- it just wasn’t plausible. 

“Okay, Centurion. Your turn,” the Thirteenth Doctor said. 

He tilted his head and their mouths collided; Rory’s scruffy chin grazed over the Doctor’s and his nose was still awkwardly in the way. In that moment, Rory also realized that he could no longer make comments about The Doctor’s chin. The kiss was short and sweet, but it sent them both into a fit of chortles due to the clumsiness. 

Just for the night, it seemed like time and space had no boundaries on The Doctor. She knew that there would be some repercussions for cheating the system and going to New York, but they would have to wait.


	4. Blink and you're dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thirteen, Amy, and Rory encounter and old nemesis in a jazz club.

_"One of these mornings you're gonna rise up singing_  
 _And you'll spread your wings and you'll take to the sky_  
 _But till that morning, there ain't nothin' can harm you_  
 _With daddy and mammy standin' by_ "

1935 New York City

 

It was almost like old times again. Although they were not visiting a new planet or exploring the future, Rory, Amy, and the Doctor made themselves comfortable at a jazz club. The old legend stated that the building was haunted by the blue robed ghost, however there was no stopping the crowd from hearing new jazz tunes.

“New regeneration, new music taste. I quite like this,” the Thirteenth Doctor observed, tapping her combat boot to the beat. She started making mental notes of musicians to visit and gigs to attend throughout time and space.

She reached into her bigger-on-the-inside pocket and pulled out a silver flask, and poured herself another shot of vodka. Amy watched Thirteen, and tried to collect her thoughts about this new Doctor. She was still very much _The Doctor_ at core, but there were groovy new elements which Amy was in favour of. For one, she was a better kisser and had much better fashion sense.

The Doctor noticed Amy watching her, “What is it, Pond?”

“Nothing. I wondered if you were more of a _wine mum_ or a _vodka aunt_ , but I guess you’re the latter,” Amy remarked.

They watched intently as the jazz quartet performed Gershwin’s new piece  _Summertime_ with a singer dressed in a shimmery gold dress, until suddenly the European Cherub chandelier flickered repeatedly. The skillful band carried on while the crowd began to murmur, but panic slowly spread around the room like a plague when all the lights went off abruptly. Then, the singer who started shouting, and several people rushed to her aid. People began speculating about the alleged ghost, and masses of them blindly ran for the exit. The quartet was nowhere to be seen, and had apparently fled with their instruments. In the midst of the commotion, Amy clutched onto The Doctor’s hand with an iron grip, and linked her arm securely around Rory’s. All three of their stomachs sank; they knew this familiar feeling all too well.

The Doctor pulled out her brand new sonic screwdriver; it was a sleek gold and white stick with a cobalt blue tip, plus it was both bendable and retractable. She aimed it at the light fixtures to temporarily brighten the room.

“The frequencies are all wrong,” she muttered to herself.

All of a sudden, they heard a blood curdling scream coming from the singer. She was still on stage, and stood face to face with a weeping angel; the monstrosity had the usual eerie smile plastered on, but its grey stone was full of cracks and dents. It was possibly the very same angel which sent Amy and Rory back in the first place. The angel appeared to feed off the energy from the microphone which the singer clutched since it pointed a crooked finger at the mic stand hungrily. Luckily for the singer, she was far too petrified to blink. In fact, she was too stunned to move any muscles on her body.

“Whatever you do, do NOT blink! Keep your eyes on it.” The Doctor hollered.  

“Doctor? Is this really happening again?” Rory whimpered.

“Oh lord. This is all my fault… coming here, I shouldn’t have been so selfish,” she replied with rage for herself. “These are the consequences for coming here, but I’m going to stop this. I won’t let anything happen to you two.”

“That’s what you said last time,” Amy muttered under her breath; nevertheless she clutched Rory and Thirteen tighter, refusing to let go of either one.

The worst case scenarios started flipping through Amy’s brain. She couldn’t let the weeping angels ruin her life _again_ , nor could she lose The Doctor and Rory _again_. She didn’t want to start over in another time period, not after she finally started adapting to the 1930s. What time period would the angel throw her to next? The 1800s? What if she didn’t end up in the same time as Rory? Amy couldn’t stop the tears from pouring out of her ducts; her cheeks looked like a flooding riviera.

“Don’t worry, I have a plan,” the Doctor turned to Amy and Rory. “But… Amelia, you’re going to have to let go of my hand.”

Amy dug her fingernails into Thirteen’s hand, refusing to let go. She was at a loss for words and stared at her in disbelief. To make matters worse, she’d called her _Amelia_ ; The Doctor only ever did that if they were worried about her.

“I can’t do that. I can’t lose you again, Doctor,” she sobbed.

The Doctor looked Amy in the eyes, and said, “Amelia Pond, if you trust me, then let go.”

Amy’s faith in The Doctor was one of the only consistent things in her life. She had always believed in him ever since the day she met him in her garden that night and she continued to, no matter what doubters said. Amy glanced at the poor singer with her eyes wide with shock, and the other terrified people in the club. With some encouragement from Rory and the realization that there were other lives who depended on The Doctor, Amy finally released her now sweaty palm.

The Doctor focused the sonic screwdriver at the chandelier, and rifled her free hand in her coat pocket. Courageously, she wedged herself in between the singer and the angel and stared straight into its stony eyes.

“Hello, I’m the Doctor,” she proclaimed.

“Doctor, don’t you dare blink,” Amy roared from below the stage.

The Doctor would’ve winked at Amy if it wasn’t for the weeping angel. Instead, she flashed her a knowing glance which seemed to say “ _I’ve got this._ ”

“Let’s see who is the fairest of them all,” Thirteen said to the monster.

The lights flickered again despite the sonic’s attempt at keeping it lit, and the statue now had its arms up with clawed hands. Next, The Doctor briskly produced an eyeshadow palette from her pocket and opened it in front of the weeping angel’s face. The mirror in the palette had reflected an image of the angel, which prompted it to stare into an image of itself. Immediately, the creature froze and then crumbled into dust before everyone’s eyes.

Just seconds after, the lights turned back on as if nothing had happened. The singer fainted and collapsed, as Amy and Rory ran onto the stage to embrace The Doctor.

“I can’t believe you did that,” Rory sputtered.

“I would never stop believing in you, you know,” Amy told Thirteen.

The Doctor kissed Amy and Rory’s foreheads, and the three huddled in silence for a while. They surveyed the overturned chairs, shattered whiskey glasses, and spilled water. What happened that evening may have been resolved, but it was a direct result of the Doctor’s actions, and she knew that she couldn’t stay.


	5. And this is how it ends

The city that never slept lived up to its name. A few streets away from the jazz club, people roamed the streets without a care in the world and the blinding lights shined from billboard to billboard. No wonder the weeping angels were always drawn to this place, in every time period. 

The trio returned to the Ponds’ apartment; they knew what would happen next but neither of them wanted to accept it. 

“This is goodbye, isn’t it?” Amy sighed. 

“I’m afraid so. Bad things will only keep coming if I don’t leave this era,” The Doctor replied regretfully. “Fixed points in time can’t be messed with and I can’t make selfish mistakes like this again.” 

“Well at least this time I get a proper goodbye, right?” Rory chimed in. 

The Doctor pulled her former companions into a tight embrace and kissed them both on the forehead. Leaving the Doctor the first time was painful, but at this point it only felt numbing for Amelia Pond. They would always be a part of The Doctor’s many lives and vice versa,  and that was all that mattered in the end. 

They walked her to the curb to catch a taxi; it was something they never thought they would do because it was so mundane. 

“Goodbye Raggedy Doctor,” Amy sniffed. She gave her one last hug and gave her best effort to smile through her tears.

“Be happy, be strong. Who knows? Maybe we will meet again somehow,” The Thirteenth Doctor coaxed. 

She climbed into the shabby mustard-coloured taxi, and headed for Massachusetts alone. The Doctor didn’t dare turn back; if she caught just one glimpse of her beloved Ponds again she might do something foolish and put more people's lives at risk. There was something special about Amelia Pond that drew The Doctor to her, no matter which incarnation she was in. 

A Ramona song was playing on the car radio; it was an intoxicating tune which The Doctor found herself tapping her foot along with the piano and the bass. She thought to herself,  _ I really need to go visit some jazz musicians _ . The driver did not mind her faux saxophone playing in the backseat, and The Doctor soon lost herself into the music. 

_ Every now and then there's a longing in my heart _ _   
_ _ Every now and then ever since we've been apart _ _   
_ _ Don't you know how much I miss you _ _   
_ _ And how I long to kiss you _ _   
_ __ Every now and then 


End file.
